Manchester United have fallen short of expectations so far this season. Jose Mourinho’s side were tipped to challenge at the top of the Premier League, but currently find themselves in 6th place.

What can they do to turn it around during the second half of the campaign? Well we here at Shoot! reckon they could do with a defender or two this January.

Mourinho’s sets his teams up to, first and foremost, be difficult to beat, his successful teams have nearly always been built on the back of a strong defence. He was only able to do that on one occasion this term, the 0-0 away draw with Liverpool.

The humiliating 4-0 defeat by Chelsea would have been a real kick in the teeth for the Portuguese, who’ll no doubt be looking to add to his defensive options this January.

Eric Bailly and Antonio Valencia have been in impressive form for the red devils, however, there are concerns over their other options to start at the back. With that in mind, here are THREE reasons why United must sign a defender in January…

First choice options are injury prone

If you had to name United’s first choice defence it would probably be something along the lines of: Shaw, Smalling, Bailly and Valencia/Darmian. Out of these players Shaw and Smalling have had injury troubles throughout their careers so far.

Smalling managed to stay fit last season and it’s no surprise it was his most impressive to date, but this campaign has seen his injury problems return. The Englishman has only managed to feature in half of United’s Premier League games so far.

Shaw undoubtedly has massive potential, but will it ever be realised as he continues to be plagued by injury? United need players to perform in the here and now, as they look to get back into Europe’s premier competition by securing a top four place this term.

Smalling and Shaw are in Mourinho’s bad books

Early in November Mourinho appeared to criticise both Chris Smalling and Luke Shaw at a press conference before an away match at Swansea.

The Portuguese was noticeably unhappy that the pair had ruled themselves out of the game, claiming they weren’t 100% fit.

This prompted the United boss to exclaim that his players should be willing to play through the pain barrier, as many other sportsmen do.

The situation is likely to have prompted the Portuguese to start looking at alternative options this January, players he feels more comfortable with, and who he can trust.

They lack a leader to martial their defence

It’s clear to us here at Shoot! that United are lacking a leader in their back line, someone to martial the defence and take control when the going gets tough, and also to make sure the team stays concentrated in games they’re dominating.

Mourinho has had a leader at the heart of the defence in each of the major teams he has managed in his career to date, think Carvalho at Porto, Terry at Chelsea, Materazzi at Inter and Pepe at Madrid. All these players took control of the defence they played in; does he have a player like this at United?

Eric Bailly looks an excellent prospect but his age and the fact that he’s still adapting to life in England mean he’s not ready to lead the back line just yet. With Smalling out of favour and Blind and Rojo not displaying strong leadership credentials during their time in England so far, United should be looking to purchase a strong centre half to command their defence for the second half of the campaign.